D&D: Strixhaven’s Five New Spells Revealed
Strixhaven‘s magical university is split into five colleges, and each one has its own new spell which players can learn.
One of the best things about Strixhaven: Curriculum of Chaos? The five different Colleges that make up the campus of Strixhaven University. The upcoming D&D fantasy book will clearly give each college a lot of room to distinguish itself.
There will be five new feats with five new mascots, and a host of themed magic items. But one of the most-anticipated new features are a suite of five new spells.
There’s one for every College, and they are all perfectly on-theme. Recently, YouTuber Fryminis gave the internet a preview of the new spells included in the book.
There are two ways to get these spells.
The first is to take the appropriate Strixhaven Initiate feat, which adds them to your class. But you might also have them just added to your spell list. Check out a full breakdown of who gets which spell.
Lorehold’s Borrowed Knowledge Spell
This spell lets you draw on knowledge from magical spirits. It’s a 2nd level spell that Bards, Clerics, Warlocks, and Wizards have access to.
Choose one skill in which you lack proficiency. For the spell’s duration, you have proficiency in the chosen skill. The spell ends early if you cast it again.
Borrowed Knowledge lasts an hour, and doesn’t require concentration, which is great. However, it doesn’t have the ritual tag and it also costs 25gp making it a steep cost for what ultimately only end up being a +2 or +3 bonus.
More ‘Strixhaven’ Previews: New Monsters & Magical Math
Prismari’s Kinetic Jaunt Spell
Over in Prismari, they’ve invented Kinetic Jaunt, which is a pretty potent buff. It takes a bonus action, and is only a 2nd level spell, but it gives Artificers, Bards, Sorcerers, Wizards, and Prismari Students the following abilities:
You magically empower your movement with dance-like steps, giving yourself the following benefits for the duration:
- Your walking speed increases by 10 feet.
- You don’t provoke opportunity attacks.
- You can move through the space of another creature, and it doesn’t count as difficult terrain. If you end your turn in another creature’s space, you are shunted to the last unoccupied space you occupied, and you take 1d8 force damage.
More ‘Strixhaven’ Previews: Strixhaven’s Orientation Video
Silverquill’s Silvery Barbs Spell
This is the lowest level custom spell at 1st level. But it’s pretty potent for what it does. As a reaction, when a creature visible within 60 feet of you succeeds on an attack roll, ability check, or saving throw, you can do the following:
You magically distract the triggering creature and turn its momentary uncertainty into encouragement for another creature. The triggering creature must reroll the d20 and use the lower roll.
AdvertisementYou can then choose a different creature you can see within range (you can choose yourself). The chosen creature has advantage on the next attack roll, ability check, or saving throw it makes within 1 minute. A creature can only be empowered by one use of this spell at a time.
This spell is functionally a better shield spell than Shield– the common convention holds that disadvantage is roughly equivalent to a -5, and advantage is a +5.
You can effectively give yourself a bonus to your AC or force an opponent to re-save. And there’s no saving throw required.
Quandrix’s Vortex Warp Spell
The mathemagical nerds at Quandrix have all banned together to study the universe and they show it with a spell that bends the fabric of space and time. Vortex Warp lets you magically teleport a creature (willing or not) to a space you can see within 90 ft. of you.
The target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw (the target can choose to fail), or the target is teleported to an unoccupied space of your choice that you can see within range. The chosen space must be on a surface or in a liquid that can support the target without the target having to squeeze.
More ‘Strixhaven’ Previews: ‘Strixhaven: Curriculum of Chaos’ Table of Contents
Witherbloom’s Wither & Bloom Spell
Finally, Witherbloom has a spell called Wither & Bloom which allows you to pick a 10 foot radius sphere. It also forces targets caught inside to take 2d6 necrotic damage on a failed Con save, or half as much if you succeed.
What do you think of Strixhaven’s new spells?
